A Guide to Creating Great Photos
Thank you for working together with us to tell stories of God’s work in the lives of orphaned and vulnerable children. The stories you share allow God to move many hearts to support children in need. An important part of the stories we tell are the photos that go with them. Photos are important because they help us connect with the people in the story, and they give us a better understanding of what is being done to help children.
Here are some best practices for when you are taking pictures:
1. Please send at least 5 to 7 photos of the subject(s) of the story.
- Try to send all of the following:
- a posed photo of them looking at the camera with a smile or pleasant expression
- a photo of them not looking directly at the camera
- additional photos of them smiling
- a photo of them not smiling
- a few photos of them doing an activity
- a few photos of them with friends and interacting with staff
- When taking photos of people, please do not take the photos too close to the person’s face. It is best to take multiple photos: one closer, one farther and one in the middle.
- Also, please never use the zoom on your phone camera. Instead, simply walk closer to the subject if you would like to get a closer shot.
2. Please also send relevant photos of ministry activities, the surrounding community, and other relevant locations and objects to help our audience understand where and how we serve.
- In most cases, it is best to take photos in landscape (horizontal) orientation, but in cases where an object doesn’t fit in the photo frame, you may occasionally take a photo in portrait (vertical) orientation.
3. When taking photos of the children we serve, it is most important to maintain their dignity.
- Please send images of people that you would be proud to share if they were your own child or friend.
- We want the images we share to be positive and inspiring because these images are more powerful to givers than images of desperate situations that lead to pity. In the first photo below, children have dirt on their legs and clothes and are not smiling. In the second photo, children are smiling and have good hygiene. The second photo maintains their dignity while the first photo does not.
4. It is important that we protect children in vulnerable conditions. If you are taking a picture of a child or an adult whose privacy needs to be protected due to safety concerns or a vulnerable story, you might consider taking a photo of the person that…
- doesn’t show their face,
- that is from far away,
- or that just shows the person’s hands and something they are doing, like drawing, cooking, praying, or working on a project.
